Name and Location
Mmamabula West coal project, Botswana.

Client
African Energy Resources.

Project Description
The coal at Mmamabula West occurs in three seams, with the majority occurring in the K- and A-seam. These two seams are 4 m to 6 m thick and occur at depths of between 50 m and 210 m. The average depth of the K-seam is 105 m, and the deeper A-Seam averages 130 m to the top of the seam.

The project has an indicated and inferred resource of 1.243-million tonnes.

The mine has been designed as an underground operation, owing to the depth of the A-seam. Access will be through a boxcut and a twin decline system, with ventilation provided by a 6.5 m upcast ventilation shaft and intake through the declines.

Bord-and-pillar mining, with continuous miner machines, has been selected as the most appropriate mining method for the A-seam, as this will not sterilise the overlying, lower-quality K-seam. Each development section will have nine roads, each with a road width of 6.5 m.

Continuous miners will be used for coal cutting, and the Joy 12HM37 was used as the basis for the mine scheduling and cost estimation, owing to its ability to cut 3.2-m- to 5.2-m-high seams. A production rate of 880 000 t/y for each machine has been used as the basis for the estimate. On this basis, five continuous miners operating in five production sections and supported by shuttle cars for coal extraction to the main decline conveyor will achieve full production of 4.4-million tonnes of run-of-mine (RoM).

The process design for the coal handling and processing plant (CHPP) are based on producing a 26 MJ/kg (air-dry basis) of clean coal. The plant capacity is 4.6-million tonnes a year RoM feed from two modules, with the second module coming on stream in the fifth mining year. With the RoM production planned at 4.4-million tonnes a year, the CHPP can accommodate improvements in mining productivity without significant capital spending.

RoM coal will be supplied from the underground mining operations through the decline conveyor and stockpiled prior to being crushed to a 40 mm top size.

Value
Initial capital costs have been estimated at $113-million for an owner-operated mine and CHPP.

A further $64-million of deferred capital could develop the mine for a 20-year period at a steady state of 4.4-million tonnes a year of RoM production.

Duration
A project implementation plan has estimated that the CHPP will take 21 months to complete, from initial procurement to commissioning.

Latest Developments
The environmental-impact assessment for the Mmamabula West export coal project has been submitted.

Meanwhile, African Energy continues to assess export infrastructure options, including rail, port, off‐take and potential project development partnerships.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Gemecs (geology and resource modelling, mine layout and production schedules), ECMA Consulting (mine design, reporting and project management), Scorpion Mineral Processing (process/process plant design), and DEA Consultants (general surface infrastructure).

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
African Energy Resources, tel +61 8 6465 5500, fax +61 8 6465 5599 or email info@africanenergyresources.com.
Gemecs, tel + 27 11 431 2327 or fax + 27 11 388 5243.
Scorpion Mineral Processing, tel +27 11 447 8971, fax +27 86 691 1891 or email info@smpsa.co.za.
DEA Consultants, tel +27 47 531 1416, fax +27 47 531 4149 or email deaumtata@telkomsa.net.